Crisis of Conscience
by SeptimusMagistos
Summary: On a routine visit to Jeremie's room, Aelita is assailed by the different sides of her personality. Which will prevail? And what will it mean for her?


I do not own Code Lyoko, its setting, its characters, or anything else about it.

Aelita quietly drew the door open and sneaked inside. She really wasn't supposed to be in Jeremie's room after lights out, but she'd made it a habit to check up on him anyway. She would trust him with her own life in a heartbeat, but he was absolutely not to be trusted with his own health.

She was pleasantly surprised by finding Jeremie in bed. He deserved the rest. However, his blanket was all messed up. Well, she could correct that easily.

But as Aelita leaned over him to make him more comfortable, she felt an overwhelming urge to get into the bed _with_ him. Biting her lip, she wrestled with her feelings. But suddenly…

"Do it…"

"Huh? Who's that?" Aelita was so distraught that she nearly forgot to whisper.

"Down here." Came a small voice from her shoulder.

Aelita stared down in surprise, to find a miniature version of herself standing there. Except that this mini-Aelita was dressed in the skull T-shirt she'd worn to her first concert. Oh, and she was grinning impishly.

"Come on. You know you want to get in there." She encouraged the real Aelita.

"No, don't!" came a voice from Aelita's other shoulder.

Aelita turned around to behold yet another tiny doppelganger. But this one was clad in a frilly white dress and looked rather concerned.

"You're not ready for something like that."

"What's going on?" Aelita demanded.

"You're having a crisis of conscience." The first copy explained.

"We're here to represent your conflicting perspectives." The other chimed in.

"Um…aren't you guys supposed to be an angel and a devil?"

"Nah. There is nothing good or evil in this decision, at least not morally speaking." The first one explained again. "We each represent a bundle of the conflicting sides of your personality. I'm with the sides that totally want you to go for it. You could call me…Curiosity? No, no, Desire! That's better."

"Ookay…" Aelita wasn't going to argue at this point. Instead she turned around to her other shoulder. "And you are?"

"As with my counterpart, there are several sides to me, but I guess the best description would be that of Caution."

"Right. Caution and Desire. Got it. So? What do you want me to do?"

"Get in that bed! And hug him!"

"No, don't!"

"Why shouldn't she?" Desire demanded.

"It's improper! She could get into trouble! He might not appreciate it! Pick your favorite reason." Caution answered.

"Please. It's not like social constructs matter to this relationship; Jim's already done his rounds and gone to bed, otherwise Aelita wouldn't even be here; and if you think Jeremie wouldn't like it, you're insane."

"I didn't say like, I said appreciate. While I'm sure he'd enjoy it, it would leave the poor boy confused and quite possibly mentally scarred. I mean, just imagine his reaction if he wakes up and finds Aelita in his bed."

"Oh, I am." Desire smiled.

"No, no. Think less happiness, more screams of shock."

"Oh, come on, it's not that bad."

"Yes it is." Caution stood triumphantly. "Jeremie's a very shy person. I'm sure Aelita doesn't want to scare him. It would be best if he's allowed to ease into things at a comfortable pace."

"That's ridiculous!" Desire countered. "Sure, he's shy, but he's clearly in love with Aelita. All he needs is a little push."

"A big enough push to give him a heart attack, perhaps?"

"Oh, come on. Just look at this." Desire's outfit changed to Aelita's Lyoko form. "See? It has a translucent skirt. Clearly Jeremie's not totally oblivious to Aelita."

"I never said he was. But look at this." Caution's outfit changed to match Desire's. Then it extended the wings that had become Aelita's favorite mode of transportation. "Clearly Jeremie sees Aelita as angelic."

"Oh, yes. He sees her as an angel. A superior being far above and out of reach of an ordinary mortal boy. Now I think the question is, does Aelita want him to see her like that?"

"There is absolutely no sense in rushing things." Caution protested. "They're both young. They have plenty of time to enjoy each other's company before they have to reach that sort of intimacy."

"Or they could just do it now. Look, I actually agree with you on some things." Desire looked devious. "I agree that Jeremie's shy and scared. But he doesn't have to be. Aelita loves him. She would never reject him. She _wants_ to be closer to him. This is the time to prove it."

"No, it's not." Caution looked deadly serious now. "Look, I acknowledge that you make some good points, and that what you offer is certainly tempting, and even that Aelita should certainly strive to deepen her relationship with Jeremie, but this isn't the way to do it. A relationship depends on understanding and organic growth, not spontaneous semi-sexual acts."

Desire looked taken aback by this argument and switched tracks. She climbed up closer to Aelita's head and whispered into her ear.

"Come on. Just imagine it. Lying right next to Jeremie, your arms around him. He'd almost certainly hug you back, you know. Just imagine being so close and so happy…"

Aelita blushed heavily. That did sound pleasant. However, she was quickly snapped out of it by the stern voice of Caution.

"I feel you should think about the long term instead. I am not denying this act would be pleasant, but it would cause awkwardness between the two of you for weeks to come. Is it really worth it?"

"Well…" Desire started answering, but was interrupted by Aelita.

"Enough! Thanks for coming out to advise me, but I think I've heard enough and I'm ready to make a decision."

The two sides of her consciousness froze, looking up at her.

"I decided I do want to get closer to Jeremie."

"Yes!" Desire cheered while Caution looked stricken.

"But not like this."

"Yes!" Caution cheered in turn. Desire pouted.

"Tomorrow, after he's awake, I will make it clear that I would like a closer relationship. Oh, and I promise I will hug sleep in the same bed as him. One day."

Satisfied with the compromise, Desire and Caution both faded out. Aelita calmly rearranged Jeremie's blanket. Then, before walking out of his room, she decided to lean down and kiss his cheek. She left Jeremie lying in his bed, totally oblivious to the strange argument that just happened in his room and to the rather pleasant fate awaiting him.


End file.
